1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to water purification systems and methods and more specifically, to a Portable Automated Water Purifier and Method.
2. Description of Related Art
The water supply to the average household today comes from a city water supply. Due to a variety of reasons many people have found the city's supplied water to be inadequate for drinking. In response a number of solutions have become available. One solution involves either the delivery or self-service purchase of bottled water. Bottles are available in a variety of sizes from very large, typically designed for the commercial environment, to the small single serving bottles. Both delivered and self-served bottled water do solve the problem of the bad tasting city supplied water. However, bottled water is typically expensive, and requires storage space be allocated for the full and empty bottles. In addition, should the user ever desire to travel, either in a camping scenario, recreational vehicle, or even in a hotel, they must either pack their bottles and take them with them, or hopefully find bottled water at their destination. Another solution to the city water problem involves the installation of a permanent water purification system. These systems are extremely efficient, easy to use, and provide good tasting water for drinking and for ice. The problem with the installed systems is again that they are expensive and also are permanently installed. Since many families are renters of property rather than owners, they may only be in a particular location for a temporary period. The renter therefore would not desire to install a purification system that may or may not be transportable to a future residence. As such, the renter is relegated to using the bottled water discussed above.
What is needed therefore is a system, like the installed water purification systems, that can take ordinary tap water supplied by the city and purify it to a point suitable for drinking. The preferred system will have the added benefit of being portable, which would enable the user to make a temporary installation of the system wherever they chose, and then removing it and taking it with them when they decide to leave. An added benefit might include the ability to operate the water purifier with a coffee or other automated beverage maker, such that the portable purifier would supply water directly to the coffee or other beverage maker without the need for additional manual steps of filling the pitcher and then transferring the water to the coffee maker.